Listen to Pierre Poilievre list his top priorities — cutting taxes, building homes, reducing the federal budget and fighting crime — and you won’t hear a specific mention of Canada’s military.
The Conservative leader has pledged to change the culture of the Canadian Armed Forces from what he calls a “woke” culture to a “warrior” one. He has suggested he’s prepared to increase the military’s resources. But what exactly would defence policy under a Poilievre government look like?
The current federal government is facing growing pressure to spend billions of dollars more to meet NATO’s military spending target for member nations — two per cent of GDP. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is confronting that pressure as he meets with leaders of other NATO countries in Washington this week.
The Conservative leader faces a different kind of pressure. He has to square his vows to “bring home control of our country …